Port Jervis (Metro-North station)

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NJ Transit train leaving the Port Jervis station. New Jersey's High Point visible in background.

The Port Jervis Metro-North station serves the residents of that city and surrounding communities. It is the western terminus of the Port Jervis Line, with trains taking New York City-bound passengers there via Hoboken and Secaucus Junction.

Located slightly off US 6 in downtown Port Jervis, it is the westernmost station in the Metro-North system. It is, in fact, within two blocks' walk of the bridge over the Delaware River to Matamoras, Pennsylvania, a state which produces some regular commuters. The northwestern tip of New Jersey, also not far away, draws riders as well. Rail distance to Hoboken via NJ Transit's Main Line is 95 miles (153 km), the longest distance from one terminal to another on the Metro-North system. The average travel time is around two hours and 10 minutes.

The actual station consists of a short concrete platform, a shelter, ticket machines and a posted schedule. Renovations and improvements similar to those done elsewhere on the line have not yet reached Port Jervis; however there is ample parking. The vicinity of the station is actually quite interesting, with trains awaiting their routes in the yard just beyond (the tracks continue upriver, but only carry Norfolk Southern freight beyond here) and various features of the once extensive facilities that existed here when it was a major stop on the Erie Railroad, including a still-working turntable, used when excursion trains operate from the station.

[edit] Erie Depot

Main article: Erie Depot

A short distance down the tracks from the station is the Erie Depot, which served as the city's passenger station for much of the 20th century. Built by the Erie Railroad in 1892, when passenger service continued on to Binghamton, it remained in service through the mid-1970s. In 1982 it was redeveloped and today houses medical offices and some small shops.